Automobile sales in South Korea posted a double-digit decline last month as the end of temporary tax cuts and the still fragile domestic demand weighed on auto purchases, industry data showed Monday.

Domestic car sales by five automakers, including Hyundai Motor, Kia Motors, GM Korea, Renault Samsung Motors and Ssangyong Motor, fell 12.5 percent from a year earlier to 98,826 vehicles in February.

The double-digit decline came as the expiration of provisional cuts in consumption tax pulled down demand for automobiles. Weak domestic demand also continued to weigh on car sales.

Global auto sales, including exports and local sales, decreased 5.6 percent to 651,329 units in February. Overseas sales, including cars exported from South Korean factories and vehicles assembled in overseas plants, slid 4.2 percent to 552,503 units.

Top automaker Hyundai Motor sold 366,446 vehicles worldwide in February, up 1.5 percent from a year earlier. Local car sales dropped 11.5 percent, while overseas sales increased 3.8 percent.

Kia Motors, the nation's No.2 carmaker and Hyundai's sister company, saw its global sales decline 14.5 percent in February from the prior year.

Local sales and exports by GM Korea, the South Korean unit of General Motors (GM), fell 7 percent last month, and those for Renault Samsung tumbled 31.6 percent.

Ssangyong Motor was the sole carmaker that saw its car sales rise last month. Ssangyong's auto sales gained 11.5 percent in February. Endi

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